The No. 4 ranked Bulldogs volleyball team kept their undefeated streak alive when they returned to Ewigleben Sports Arena for another weekend series.
The Bulldogs (17-0, 9-0 in the GLIAC) soundly defeated the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals (7-18, 1-6 in the GLIAC) by a score of 3-0 on Friday, Oct. 11, and beat the Lake Superior State Lakers (9-18, 2-6 in the GLIAC) by a score of 3-0 on Saturday, Oct. 12.
During the historic run, Ferris has only lost six sets this entire season, which would be the least amount of sets lost since the 2015 season when the Bulldogs opened the season 12-0 and lost five sets during that time.
With their sweep of the Cardinals and the Lakers, the Bulldogs have not lost a set to an opponent in six matches, the last being when they lost the second set to the Northwood Wolves on Oct. 1.
Senior middle hitter Syann Fairfield credits the team’s work ethic for their win streak.
“Each day in practice we have just been working hard towards the things that we think will help get us just even 1% better each day,” Fairfield said. “We also just feel a great amount of trust within each other on the court which is always comforting, especially in moments where we are losing.”
Ferris continued their dominance against the Cardinals, who haven’t won a set against the Bulldogs since Nov. 4, 2022. Ferris was victorious in all three sets against the Cardinals, winning the first set by a score of 25-16, the second set by a score of 25-20 and finishing off the Cardinals in the third set with a score of 25-12.
Senior outside hitter Olivia Henneman-Dallape led the match with 10 kills and 14 points. Senior middle hitter Chelsie Freeman had six kills and 12 points and senior setter Kaylee Maat led with 26 total assists.
Saturday saw the Bulldogs reign victorious against the Lakers, who have not won a set against Ferris since Nov 4, 2016. The Bulldogs won all three sets, with the first set won by a score of 25-15, the second set by a score of 25-18 and the third set by a score of 25-20.
Henneman-Dallape had 10 kills and 10 points during the match, while Fairfield also had 10 kills but led the team in points with 11.5. Maat led the team yet again in assists with 30 and senior libero Leah Bylut led the match with 12 digs.
Bylut believes the team’s mastery on the court stems from their chemistry and culture.
“Chemistry and culture play a huge role in our success as a team, I think our team has a lot of trust in each other, and this allows us to play freely and with a lot of confidence,” Bylut said. “We really emphasize how every role on our team is important, each individual works to do their job to the best of their ability, not to mention the amount of depth we have, which allows different people to step up and change the energy of the game when we need it.”
The Bulldogs will be traveling to Hammond, Ind. to compete in the Midwest Regional Crossover on Friday, Oct. 18 and Saturday, Oct. 19. The tournament features 38 NCAA Division II teams from the G-MAC, the GLIAC, and the GLVC, with each team playing three matches each.
Freeman gave her thoughts heading into the Midwest Regional Crossover.
“I’m feeling very excited, our region is filled with great programs, and having the opportunity to play them mid-season is something I enjoy, I know it’s going to be a tough weekend playing teams from the GMAC and GLVC,” Freeman said. “I’m feeling very good going into the tournament to see what my team and I can do on the court together to be successful.”